Yesterday, at the age of 22 months, Lucas received an autism diagnosis from a developmental pediatrician. It comes as no shocker, but actually having a diagnosis made this all the more real for me. Dr. Tan was so good about explaining the criteria he used to give the autism diagnosis. It seems he based it mostly on the lack of social interaction - he said there are 12 criteria used and 6 involves social responsiveness. He also stated that autism is a syndrome where generalizations in thinking iss lacking and said he would put in a referral for ABA services to be had at our home. Many studies seem to show that ABA may not be so beneficial for autistics. In fact, today I read a statement made by an autistic woman who went through the ABA who said that it produces OCD behaviors. This doesn't surprise me as ABA involves repetitive behaviors using Pavlov's model of positive reinforcement. Also, since autism is a deficit in generalized thinking, certain information, say, a person's address can be drilled into the brain in an ABA context but once outside the environment, such as when lost, the person may not be able to recall his address. So, what good is all that repetitive teaching\drilling in information? Dr. Tan agrees there are some pitfalls to the method but believes Lucas would benefit greatly at this time. It may be beneficial to Lucas right now but I don't think I would continue with this method when he gets a bit older.
I know there are other methods of teaching out there such as the SonRise program, but there doesn't seem to be concrete evidence that this method works, at all - although, many parents claim to see huge improvements. I am interested in finding out about a Japanese method (the name eludes me), but I was told this method is not available in the US. The method seems more humane than the ABA but I am worried because it involves alot of physical activities (play) and with Lucas' condition, I am afraid the metabolic stress from too much physical exertion could lead to onset of seizures.
After receiving the diagnosis, I needed some time on my own so I went to Whittier Narrows Lake by myself and sat in the car and watched the ducks and geese glide in the water and thought, "God, I know I asked for a special child, but I didn't mean 'special' in this sense". I released a wish and a prayer out to the universe that more medical understanding of his condition would occur soon, that I would be strong and capable of taking good care of him and that a therapeutic drug would be available for him. I know I was heard because I felt tears roll down my face and I felt not alone. Just that 20 minutes of time in the car made a huge difference in my day so I picked up some strawberries at the patch next to the lake and headed home. My little Lucas was eating dinner with his daddy and I couldn't believe how cute he is. He is such a good baby - and he warms my heart with every little thing he does. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful soul be my son and I am looking forward to all the things he will reveal to me about life, God and how to love.
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